Presumptive Regeneration

Hi ya Tim, nice to meet you.


I am more of a baptist myself. I have never belong to a baptist church, but there are many that I could belong to. The reason i bring this up, when reading Calvin, his infant baptisim was more like you just stated. Many baptist can not relate to this and it sounds strange to many. But from what i read it is much like a Baby dedication that i see in many Baptist Churches, only without the water. I have never meet someone that believes this saves the baby. There maybe some that believe this, but then again there are some that believe that Baptising after salvation is step 2 in the salvation plan. Calvin did not teach that infant baptisim was salvation ..i'm pretty sure of that. If done for the right reasons, It does show a willness to see your child raised right and great hope for their salvation. Its also a call to the local Church to help you in this goal. I had my girls dedicated to the Lord when they were under the age of 2. This did not save them. I was trying to show that I knew that they were a gift from God and it was I that would not hold them back as if they belong to me. I was saying I would train them in such a way that after salvation, if that day came...and thank God it did, that My girls would be trained to serve Him.


My two oldest girls now work in a Christain school and are very busy in there local church. One helps run the youth dept with her hubbie. They have seen the youth group grow 300% in the last year. 13 came to knew Christ as Lord last year. This is NOT one of those easy believe churches...but preaches repentance.

Ok..there maybe a little pride there from me. But i have to say that we pointed back to that day of dedication a few times over the years as we raised our girls to remind them of that moment. My last girl i just dropped of at Bible college. I did not FORCE any of them to go to Bible college. It was there choice...FULLY. They all have picked very good Bible schools to attend.

In short..Even though it is not something that my church does, i see nothing wrong with it...if done with the right picture in mine. One could make clear that it has nothing to do with salvation nor is salvation a "given". The child still must take Christ as Lord.


In Christ...James

 

James,

That is a wonderful story. Praise the Lord that He is faithful in his promises.

 

Some in the PCA do believe in presumptive regeneration. Not all do. I have no idea what the percentages are, but I have read the writings of several who do. Here's one example: http://www.mbrem.com/baptism/defense.htm